20th New Zealand Parliament

Term of the Parliament of New Zealand

20th Parliament of New Zealand

| <-| 19th Parliament | 21st Parliament| ->

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Parliament House, Wellington

Overview
Legislative body| New Zealand Parliament
Term| 14 June 1920 – 31 October 1922
Election| 1919 New Zealand general election
Government| Reform Government
House of Representatives

Members| 80
Speaker of the House| Frederic Lang
Prime Minister| William Massey
Leader of the Opposition| Thomas Wilford from 8 September 1920
— William MacDonald until 31 August 1920 †
Legislative Council
Members| 43 (at start)
38 (at end)
Speaker of the Council| Sir Walter Carncross
Leader of the Council| Sir Francis Bell
Sovereign
Monarch| HM George V
Governor-General| HE Rt. Hon. The Viscount Jellicoe from 27 September 1920
— HE Rt. Hon. The Earl of Liverpool until 8 July 1920

The 20th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the New Zealand Parliament. It was elected at the 1919 general election in December of that year.

## 1919 general election[edit]

Main article: 1919 New Zealand general election

The 1919 general election was held on Tuesday, 16 December in the Māori electorates and on Wednesday, 17 December in the general electorates, respectively.[1] A total of 80 MPs were elected; 45 represented North Island electorates, 31 represented South Island electorates, and the remaining four represented Māori electorates.[2] 683,420 voters were enrolled and the official turnout at the election was 80.5%.[1]

## Sessions[edit]

The 20th Parliament sat for four sessions (there were two sessions in 1921), and was prorogued on 30 November 1922.[3]

Session | Opened | Adjourned

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first | 24 June 1920 | 11 November 1920
second | 10 March 1921 | 22 March 1921
third | 22 September 1921 | 11 February 1922
fourth | 28 June 1922 | 31 October 1922

## Party standings[edit]

### Start of Parliament[edit]

[4]

Party | Leader(s) | Seats at start

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| Reform Party | William Massey | 47
| Liberal Party | William MacDonald | 21
| Labour Party | Harry Holland | 8
| Independent | 4

### End of Parliament[edit]

Party | Leader(s) | Seats at end

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| Reform Party | William Massey | 44
| Liberal Party | Thomas Wilford | 18
| Labour Party | Harry Holland | 9
| Independents | 7

## Ministries[edit]

The wartime coalition between the Reform Party and the Liberal Party had come to an end by August 1919. William Massey of the Reform Party had been the leader of the coalition, with Joseph Ward of the Liberal Party as the deputy.[5] Ward left the coalition because it had become deeply unpopular with the population.[6] Massey then formed the second Massey Ministry on 25 August 1919 and remained in power during the term of the 20th Parliament and beyond until his death on 10 May 1925.[6][7]

## Initial composition of the 20th Parliament[edit]

The table below shows the results of the 1919 general election:

Key

Reform |  Liberal |  Labour |  Liberal–Labour

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Independent Liberal |  Independent Labour |  Independent
Electorate results for the 1919 New Zealand general election[8] Electorate  | Incumbent  | Winner  | Majority  | Runner up

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General electorates
Ashburton |  | William Nosworthy | 1,493  |  | William Dickie
Auckland Central |  | Albert Glover |  | Bill Parry | 786  |  | Albert Glover
Auckland East |  | Arthur Myers | 158  |  | Clutha Mackenzie
Auckland West |  | Charles Poole |  | Michael Joseph Savage | 533  |  | Charles Frederick Bennett[9]
Avon |  | George Russell |  | Dan Sullivan | 1,648  |  | George Russell
Awarua |  | Joseph Ward |  | John Hamilton | 757  |  | Joseph Ward
Bay of Islands |  | Vernon Reed | 1,195  |  | St. Claire Jounneaux
Bay of Plenty |  | William MacDonald | 1,234  |  | Kenneth Williams
Bruce |  | James Allen | 126  |  | John Edie
Buller |  | James Colvin |  | Harry Holland | 1,003  |  | Denis Quinlan O'Brien[9]
Chalmers |  | James Dickson | 883  |  | John Gilchrist
Christchurch East |  | Henry Thacker | 1,940  |  | Hiram Hunter
Christchurch North |  | Leonard Isitt | 2,403  |  | Tim Armstrong
Christchurch South |  | Harry Ell |  | Ted Howard | 1,675  |  | Henry Holland
Clutha |  | Alexander Malcolm | 134  |  | Robert Alexander Rodger[10][11]
Dunedin Central |  | Charles Statham | 497  |  | Jim Munro
Dunedin North |  | Andrew Walker |  | Edward Kellett | 806  |  | Andrew Walker
Dunedin South |  | Thomas Sidey | 84  |  | Tom Paul
Dunedin West |  | William Downie Stewart | 2,421  |  | John Arthur Brown[12][13]
Eden |  | James Parr | 1,854  |  | Oscar McBrine
Egmont |  | Charles Wilkinson |  | Oswald Hawken | 191  |  | David Lyon Abbott Astbury
Ellesmere |  | Heaton Rhodes | 749  |  | George Barclay
Franklin |  | William Massey | 3,030  |  | Joseph Rea
Gisborne |  | James Carroll |  | Douglas Lysnar | 373  |  | James Carroll
Grey Lynn |  | John Payne |  | Fred Bartram | 481  |  | Ellen Melville
Hawke's Bay |  | John Findlay |  | Hugh Campbell | 942  |  | Gilbert McKay
Hurunui |  | George Forbes | 667  |  | John George Armstrong[14]
Hutt |  | Thomas Wilford | 1,005  |  | David Pritchard
Invercargill |  | Josiah Hanan | 1,403  |  | John Archer
Kaiapoi |  | David Buddo |  | David Jones | 50  |  | David Buddo
Kaipara |  | Gordon Coates | 3,291  |  | Alfred Gregory
Lyttelton |  | James McCombs | 577  |  | Robert Macartney[9]
Manawatu | New electorate  |  | Edward Newman | 866  |  | Alfred Hillier
Manukau |  | Frederic Lang | 2,508  |  | Rex Mason
Marsden |  | Francis Mander | 189  |  | Alfred Murdoch
Masterton |  | George Sykes |  | George Sykes | 344  |  | A C Holms
Mataura |  | George Anderson | 1,336  |  | David McDougall
Motueka |  | Richard Hudson | 661  |  | Percy Power
Napier |  | Vigor Brown | 54  |  | Frederick Charles Evans[15][16]
Nelson |  | Thomas Field |  | Harry Atmore | 510  |  | Thomas Field
Oamaru |  | Ernest Lee | 276  |  | John MacPherson
Ohinemuri |  | Hugh Poland | 555  |  | J Clark
Oroua |  | David Guthrie | 1,843  |  | E J Tunnicliffe
Otaki |  | William Hughes Field | 1,232  |  | James McKenzie
Pahiatua |  | Harold Smith |  | Archibald McNicol | 170  |  | Robert Ross
Palmerston |  | Jimmy Nash | 1,004  |  | Moses Ayrton[17]
Parnell |  | James Samuel Dickson | 3,419  |  | Tom Bloodworth
Patea |  | George Pearce |  | Walter Powdrell | 255  |  | William Morrison
Raglan |  | Richard Bollard | 988  |  | Bill Jordan
Rangitikei |  | Edward Newman |  | Billy Glenn | 635  |  | F P Brady[18]
Riccarton |  | George Witty | 626  |  | William Russell Devereux[19]
Roskill | New electorate  |  | Vivian Potter | 1,854  |  | James Gunson
Rotorua | New electorate  |  | Frank Hockly | 1,733  |  | Malcolm Larney[20]
Stratford |  | John Hine |  | Robert Masters | 61  |  | John Hine
Taranaki |  | Sydney George Smith |  | Sydney George Smith | 1,023  |  | George H. Buckeridge
Tauranga |  | William Herries | 1,860  |  | Benjamin Robbins[21]
Temuka |  | Charles Talbot |  | Thomas Burnett | 31  |  | Charles Talbot
Thames |  | Thomas William Rhodes | 1,590  |  | W J McCormick
Timaru |  | James Craigie |  | James Craigie | 1,519  |  | Percy Vinnell
Waikato |  | Alexander Young | 2,893  |  | P H Watts
Waimarino |  | Robert William Smith | 643  |  | Frank Langstone
Waipawa |  | George Hunter | 274  |  | Albert Jull
Wairarapa |  | J. T. Marryat Hornsby |  | Alex McLeod | 540  |  | J. T. Marryat Hornsby
Wairau |  | Richard McCallum | 796  |  | B J Cooke
Waitaki |  | John Anstey |  | John Bitchener | 472  |  | John Anstey
Waitemata |  | Alexander Harris | 1,419  |  | Arthur Edwin Greenslade[22]
Waitomo | New electorate  |  | William Jennings | 377  |  | K C Wilson
Wakatipu |  | William Fraser |  | James Horn | 801  |  | Robert Scott
Wallace |  | John Charles Thomson |  | Adam Hamilton | 43  |  | John Charles Thomson
Wanganui |  | Bill Veitch | 1,703  |  | William J. Cuttle
Wellington Central |  | Peter Fraser | 1,056  |  | Frederick Pirani[9]
Wellington East |  | Alfred Newman | 1,058  |  | Alec Monteith
Wellington North |  | John Luke | 1,065  |  | H. Oakley Browne
Wellington South |  | Bob Semple |  | George Mitchell | 1,426  |  | Bob Semple
Wellington Suburbs |  | Robert Wright | 1,127  |  | Alexander Croskery
Westland |  | Tom Seddon | 1,497  |  | James O'Brien
Māori electorates
Eastern Maori |  | Āpirana Ngata | Uncontested
Northern Maori |  | Taurekareka Henare | 1,629  |  | Nau Parone Kawiti
Southern Maori |  | Hopere Uru | 207  |  | Riki te Mairaki Taiaroa
Western Maori |  | Māui Pōmare | 1,424  |  | Ngarangi Katitia

## By-elections during 20th Parliament[edit]

There were a number of changes during the term of the 20th Parliament.

Electorate and by-election | Date | Incumbent | Cause | Winner

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Bruce | 1920 | 14 April  |  | James Allen | Resignation  |  | John Edie
Stratford | 1920 | 6 May  |  | Robert Masters | Election declared void  |  | Robert Masters
Bay of Plenty | 1920 | 30 September  |  | William MacDonald | Death  |  | Kenneth Williams
Patea | 1921 | 13 April  |  | Walter Powdrell | Death  |  | Edwin Dixon
Auckland East | 1921 | 2 November  |  | Arthur Myers | Resignation  |  | Clutha Mackenzie
Southern Maori | 1922 | 25 January  |  | Hopere Uru | Death  |  | Henare Uru
Dunedin North | 1922 | 21 June  |  | Edward Kellett | Death  |  | Jim Munro

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ a b "General elections 1853–2005 - dates & turnout". Elections New Zealand. Archived from the original on 27 May 2010. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
2. ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 90.
3. ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 69.
4. ^ "1890–1993 general elections | Elections". elections.nz. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
5. ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 44.
6. ^ a b Gustafson, Barry. "Massey, William Ferguson - Biography". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
7. ^ Scholefield 1950, pp. 44–45.
8. ^ Hislop, J. (1921). The General Election, 1919. National Library. pp. 1–6. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
9. ^ a b c d Gustafson 1980, p. 181.
10. ^ "Clutha". Otago Daily Times. No. 17779\. 11 November 1919. p. 6. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
11. ^ Dickson, Amanda Rodger (23 September 2011). "West Otago A & P Society". Amanda Rodger Dickson at Wordpress. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
12. ^ Gustafson 1980, p. 155.
13. ^ "The election campaign". Evening Star. No. 17218\. 6 December 1919. p. 6. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
14. ^ "Notice of nominations received". The Press. Vol. LV, no. 16701\. 9 December 1919. p. 10. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
15. ^ "Notice of Nominations Received". Hawke's Bay Tribune. Vol. IX, no. 303\. 9 December 1919. p. 6. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
16. ^ "Napier". Hawera & Normanby Star. Vol. LXXIV. 7 November 1919. p. 5. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
17. ^ Brown, Colin. "Moses Ayrton". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
18. ^ Gustafson 1980, p. 154.
19. ^ "Notice of Nominations Received". The Press. Vol. LV, no. 16702\. 10 December 1919. p. 12. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
20. ^ "Rotorua Seat". Auckland Star. Vol. L, no. 282\. 27 November 1919. p. 11. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
21. ^ "Liberal Selection for Tauranga". Wairarapa Daily Times. Vol. 45, no. 13977\. 11 November 1919. p. 5. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
22. ^ "Waitemata Parliamentary Election". Observer. Vol. XL, no. 14\. 6 December 1919. p. 12. Retrieved 5 December 2014.

## References[edit]

* Gustafson, Barry (1980). Labour's path to political independence: The Origins and Establishment of the New Zealand Labour Party, 1900–19. Auckland, New Zealand: Auckland University Press. ISBN 0-19-647986-X.
* McRobie, Alan (1989). Electoral Atlas of New Zealand. Wellington: GP Books. ISBN 0-477-01384-8.
* Scholefield, Guy (1950) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 (3rd ed.). Wellington: Govt. Printer.
* Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.